Very Merry - Simple Stories - Simple Vintage Believe Collection

Hi everyone, it’s Rebecca with you today. I can’t believe it’s December already—where has this year gone?! It felt only right to use a Christmas collection this month, so I’ve chosen to create with the wonderful Simple Vintage Believe collection by Simple Stories. I love a more traditional Christmas aesthetic, and out of the four Christmas lines Simple Stories released this year, this one appealed to me the most. You can find the collection in the shop here.

I started with the Journal Elements patterned paper and cut out several of the larger pieces. After distressing the edges, I arranged them in the centre of a sheet of Premium White Cardstock, adding foam between the layers to create dimension. I also tucked in a few pieces from the Ephemera pack for extra depth.

On top of these layers, I placed my photo, framing it with a piece from an older 49 and Market collection. On either side of the photo, I added icons from the Floral Bits & Pieces and Ephemera packs. To build up these clusters even more, I incorporated some Cardstock Stickers.

I felt the background needed a touch of mixed media, but because my design was quite “blocky,” I didn’t want to use coloured ink—it just doesn’t always suit this kind of structure! Instead, I decided on stamping. I pulled out a selection of stamps from my stash, including some by Arden Creative and 49 and Market, and stamped all around the edges of my design.

I loved the effect but felt the layout needed a darker paper to pull everything together. I considered framing the entire page with the All the Trimmings paper, but it didn’t look quite right. Instead, I tore two strips of the same patterned paper and added them above and below my layered design. This felt like the perfect finishing touch.

Thanks so much for reading. I hope you’re all enjoying the countdown to Christmas and finding some time to scrap your December memories. I’m hoping to be back with one final layout before the year is out—so until then, take care.

Rebecca xx

@preciouspagespapercraft